Is the Measles Death Rate in Children Only 1 in 106 Million?
Why do some people think that a child’s risk of dying with measles is only 1 in 106 million?
The usual suspects…
Is the Measles Death Rate in Children Only 1 in 106 Million?
Don’t be surprised though.
It is a well known tactic of anti-vaccine influencers to downplay the risks of vaccine preventable diseases, like measles.
Of course, all while they are also overstating the risks of vaccines.
But how can they think that the death rate from measles is less than 1 in 106 million children, when everyone else knows that it is more like 1 to 2 deaths for every 1,000 people with measles?
I mean, think about it…
Considering that there are only about 75 million children in the United States, that would be fewer than one death each year.
And that actually makes it easy to see that they are talking about the risk of death in a well vaccinated population, where measles in under good control, not the risk of dying during outbreaks or when you get measles.
It’s certainly not an unvaccinated child’s risk of dying, as we see more measles outbreaks, as fewer people get vaccinated.
It’s not even a child’s risk of dying with measles last year when two unvaccinated kids in Texas died!
So instead of this misleading measles death rate that is being promoted by anti-vaccine influencers, what should you be thinking about?
You should be thinking about your child’s risk of getting measles, especially if they are not vaccinated and protected with two age-appropriate doses of the MMR vaccine.
Why?
Because:
people with measles are contagious for up to 4 days before they have a fever and 4 days after they develop a rash
the measles virus remains infectious for up to 2 hours after a person with measles leaves an area
if you are not vaccinated, you have a 90% chance of getting sick with measles if you are exposed and your risk is probably greatest if you regularly spend time with a lot of other people who are not vaccinated
we are regularly hearing about exposures, especially in outbreak areas, at schools, churches, pharmacies, grocery stores, and restaurants.
more people are getting measles without knowing how or when they were exposed
And of course, measles cases and outbreaks continue to reach record levels that we haven’t seen in over 30 years.
So if your child does get measles, you should know that their risk of dying is much higher than 1 in 106 million.
That’s a made up statistic to help people feel better about their decision to skip or delay their child’s MMR vaccine, leaving them at risk to get measles.
Instead, your child’s risk of dying if they get sick with measles is the traditional 1 to 2 deaths for every 1,000 people with measles, even if they are otherwise healthy. Of course, if they are malnourished, immunosuppressed, or have chronic medical problems, then their risk of dying because they have measles is much higher.
Also, even if they survive having measles, which is likely, know that measles isn’t a mild disease that you want your child to have. And besides having immunity, which you just earned, but could have had with an MMR vaccine, there are no benefits to having measles.
At best, a typical case of measles, without complications, is a good week of a high fever - up to 104°F (40°C) to 105°F (40.6°C), deep cough, red, watery eyes that cause a dislike for bright light, sore throat, and irritability.
Bottom Line - don’t let anti-vaccine influencers scare you away from vaccinating and protecting yourself and your family. Don’t get measles and don’t start a measles outbreak.